Abstract

In spite of the persistent legends linking it with the Ancient Egyptians or bands of wandering Gypsies, tarot had its origins in the decadent Court of Milan in Northern Italy, sometime around the beginning of the fifteenth century. It was an innovative modification of the regular playing card deck that was relatively common throughout Italy, having arrived from Northern Africa most likely through the busy port of Venice. The eccentric Duke Filippo Maria Visconti oversaw the design of the trump cards that would become characteristic of tarot. The modified deck was used in a trick-taking game which functioned as an allegory for life in which both skill and chance played a part. The trump cards of the three extant Visconti tarot decks formed a particular narrative of Visconti history, culminating in the World trump depicting the glory of Milan.